9. Five Months Later

[GreyWolfVT]

Gragog wipes the worg blood off on the fur of the dead worg before him "Agreed little one better to be gone and heal in the protection of your hideout than heal hear and risk being seen." the half-orc means to follow the gnome not wanting to waste money at the overpriced inn.

[Inferno]

Agax Gryyg, game mage:

The white bearded wizard pulled up the hood of his Elven Cloak and followed Castran without another word. The sun would soon be setting, and he needed to recover his offensive spells.

[Zhym]

Date: Trieluna 12, 1222
Time: 5:33 PM
Weather: Fog
Location: The Old Svalich Road, East of Town
**************************************

Lar lays hands on Peytr. Cuts close and bruises fade; Petyr is almost at full health. Gragog and Lar retrieve the beetle shells.

Castran leads the way to the hideout where he and Bragar had spent so much of the past five months. You pass through town unmolested, but not unnoticed, and congregate inside the two-story row house.

-----
Status: Bragar: 33/42 (C7), Castran: 23/23 (F5/I6); Gragog (F7): 40/49; Lar (P6): 34/40; Scarlett (C7/T5): 34/34; Agax (MU7): 45/45; Petyr (F4): 26/30; Bogdana (C3): 23/23; Shinyah (D7): 38/38, Honeynose: 21/28, Treescratcher: 29/29, Hihu: 4/4
Effects: Bless (Scarlett): 4 rounds, Sanctuary (Bogdana): 4 rounds

[Stirling]

Scarlett will light up some fragrant candles in a discreet corner of the house and busy herself with creating a nice warg tooth and petty gemstone necklace from fangs taken from the wolf corpses, particularly of W7. Perhaps also cutting off its' tail to burn upon an altar of thankgiving.

The thick air and mist make her cough slightly and breathe heavy. She will inquire of Castran and Bragar about the church in town and listen intently to their stories. What of your comrades?

[GreyWolfVT]

Gragog sets the beetle shells down on the floor "Well here;s to hoping these will make for some good armor for a fair price. Though if it is anything like the inn you speak of our idea may have been more a waste of time"

[Dram]

Bragar- Castran and myself have been able to hide here within this abandoned house. Between his spells of illusion and my protection spells. We should heal our wounds and rest. Once we get in the castle there will be no rest. The church is in shamble it has been descreted by the evil that rules this village. Does anyone require healing before I heal myself?

[GreyWolfVT]

Gragog "What about the local smithy? What condition is it in? Still being operated?"

[Dram]

Bragar- I don't believe we met the smithy.

[Inferno]

Agax Gryyg, game mage:

"It's rather charming!" Agax smiled at the accommodations. "Cozy too. Now if you would excuse me, is there a room where I might meditate in private please? I should very much like the recover my magic power."

[Zhym]

There is a blacksmith in town. Vasily Borgov's smithy is near the edge of town. He mostly does small items and repairs.

If you want to do anything before sleeping, now would be the time. Here's a recap of the HP situation:

Status: Bragar: 33/42 (C7)
Castran: 23/23 (F5/I6)
Gragog (F7): 40/49
Lar (P6): 34/40
Scarlett (C7/T5): 34/34
Agax (MU7): 45/45
Petyr (F4): 26/30
Bogdana (C3): 23/23
Shinyah (D7): 38/38, Honeynose: 21/28, Treescratcher: 29/29, Hihu: 4/4

Will you set a watch schedule?

[GreyWolfVT]

Gragog "Well if the smithy is able to do work for a fair price we might as well try and get these beetle shells to him for making armor."

[Storm11]

"It is unlikely he will offer a service that is reasonable. The mist that surrounds this land is poisonous. We are trapped within Barovia now, until the vampyr is dealt with, perhaps even after that. With no other options available these local people seem happy to extort whatever prices they can get. And they would rather go hungry than haggle. That has been our experience within the town these last months. But it might be worth a try. Be back here before dark falls however. If any of you have warding magics to work, it would be wise to weave them here, now." says the gnome ominously.

[Inferno]

Agax Gryyg, game mage:

The dreaming wizard said to Castran, "Poisonous, you say? Hmm.
"I'm afraid I have no such wards. Should I study them for tomorrow, or is it your intention that we move against this vampyre at dawn?"

Agax will heal Gragog and Lar before he locks himself away in a quiet, windowless room to meditate, pray and dream of distant, fabled Urth.

After he has rested and recovered his magic power, Agax would be happy to take a turn on watch.

CLW Gragog: [1d8] = 2
CLW Lar: [1d8] = 4

[Dram]

Bragar- Does anyone require any heling before I attend to my own wounds?

[Cwreando]

"I have just nicks and bruises so heal the others or yourself before you heal me if you have any spells left", Lar says. "Check the smithy if you want."

[Stirling]

"yes I will check the smithy and get this Vasily working. Those carapace plates will have been well cured by now following the trek across the hills. Plus we can spy out any other conspicuous buildings and shady characters following us along the way"

Scarlett leaves her backpack in the derelict house taking just her toolkit and potion pouches, weapons and clerical parchments. "which one of you honey's will carry the sack for me?"

[Cwreando]

Lar say, "Don't worry Scarlett. I walk with you and help carry the bag."

[GreyWolfVT]

"yes I will check the smithy and get this Vasily working. Those carapace plates will have been well cured by now following the trek across the hills. Plus we can spy out any other conspicuous buildings and shady characters following us along the way"

Scarlett leaves her backpack in the derelict house taking just her toolkit and potion pouches, weapons and clerical parchments. "which one of you honey's will carry the sack for me?"

Gragog "I'm already carrying the shells with us so perhaps someone else?" the half orc leaves everything else of his in the house except for his sword strapped to his belt and the beetle shells.

[Zhym]

Date: Trieluna 12, 1222
Time: 6:00 PM
Weather: Fog
Location: The Old Svalich Road, East of Town
**************************************

Safely (?) inside Bragar and Castran's hideout, you discuss your situation and make plans. Agax, ever the optimist, finds the abandoned house "rather charming." He looks for a place where he can study his spells.

Scarlett lights some fragrant candles in a corner of the room and busies herself turning wolf fangs into jewelry. She asks Bragar and Castran about the church in town and learn that it is in a shambles. She also inquires about the fate of their comrades, but receives no answer.

Gragog, Lar, and Scarlett make plans to have their beetle shells fashioned into armor or shields. They learn that there is a smithy of sorts, but that they could expect to pay exorbitant prices if it is anything like other places in Barovia. They also learn that the land is enveloped by a poisonous mist. They, like Bragar and Castran, are now trapped in this land.

Despite Castran's warnings, the trio decide to go visit the smithy this evening. When they open the door, however, the fog that hangs in the street is a dark shade of grey. Night approaches. Will they continue on, or wait until morning?

BTW, Bragar doesn't have to wait for people to tell him that they are injured if you don't want him to. Health status among PCs is essentially public knowledge. Bragar may not know that Gragog is at 40/49 HP, for example, but he'd know that Gragog shows some wounds that are roughly equivalent to a strong fighter being at about 80% of full health.

You all don't know when sunset is precisely, but you have a general idea that at this time of year, in this part of the land, sunset would be around 6:15, give or take. The tall mountains to the west would affect that somewhat. Think of a mountainous region in eastern Europe or the northern U.S. around mid-March, and you'll have a general feel for when sunset would be.

Of course, none of your characters have wristwatches, even though I give the time with most posts, so you would only have a vague sense of when night will fall other than by waiting for the dim grey of daytime to become the black of night.

-----
Status: Bragar: 33/42 (C7), Castran: 23/23 (F5/I6); Gragog (F7): 40/49; Lar (P6): 34/40; Scarlett (C7/T5): 34/34; Agax (MU7): 45/45; Petyr (F4): 26/30; Bogdana (C3): 23/23; Shinyah (D7): 38/38, Honeynose: 21/28, Treescratcher: 29/29, Hihu: 4/4
Effects: None

[GreyWolfVT]

Gragog looks outside "Better yet let it wait till morning."